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The purpose of this paper is a single-center six-month follow-up study to determine nutritional status of children with maple syrup urine disease (MSUD). Prolonged restriction on essential amino acid could cause malnutrition. By far, there is no study reported in the context of nutritional status among children with maple syrup urine disease (MSUD), who required life-long protein restriction.

A total of 22 children with MSUD, aged from 1 to 12 years (6.54 ± 3.27) undergoing regular treatment in Institute of Pediatrics, Hospital Kuala Lumpur, were recruited. Body height, weight and head circumference were measured for anthropometry, whereas total protein, albumin and plasma branched-chain amino acid were measured for biochemical aspects. Clinical features diagnosed by pediatrician were recorded from children’s medical record. The 24-hour dietary recall was conducted to measure their nutrients intake. All assessments were repeated at six-month interval except clinical profile.

There were no significant differences in all nutritional parameters from baseline to end of the visit. There was a prominence (particular noticeable of) of growth stunting (68; 64 per cent), undernutrition (35; 32 per cent) and microcephalic (57; 57 per cent) among children with MSUD. Nevertheless, children showed no significant improvement of anthropometric variables from baseline and after 6-month follow-up visit. Nearly all biochemical indicators were significantly (p < 0.05) higher than the reference value except valine. Intellectual disability was the most frequently (71 per cent) presenting symptoms among them. The finding also did not show any macro- or micronutrients fail to achieve above recommended nutrient intake in both visits. In conclusion, it is clear that no significant nutritional deficiency was induced by the use of MSUD dietary therapy; however, the findings indicated that MSUD children are at risk of malnutrition and regular nutritional assessment and monitoring should always be emphasized for optimal linear growth without affecting their amino acid profiles.

Multiple 24-hour recalls instead of single 24-hour recall should be used in this study for a better estimate of intake.

Although there are retrospective studies targeted in presenting the clinical and biochemical profile of MSUD children which has been extensively examined, limited research has focused on prospective aspect of nutritional status of these children who are undergoing active and regular diet and medical nutrition therapy because of the absence of comprehensive reliable nutritional assessment data.

As artificial intelligence (AI), big data, and the diverse interconnected systems transform the operations of industries worldwide, a significant mismatch between the skills taught by educational institutions and those demanded by the labour market emerges. In view of the urgency to close the gap resulted from digital transformation, this chapter thus delves into the challenges faced by industries in Malaysia. Particularly, it looks at how local institutions can bridge such gaps on one hand; while it also discusses how industries in Malaysia can remain competitive before discussing the skills new graduates and the existing workforce need to acquire on the other hand. The discussion will thus emphasize on technical skills, such as AI, data science, and cybersecurity, alongside employability skills, such as critical thinking, communication, and problem-solving. The chapter then examines the role of government interventions, including Malaysia’s Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) programmes and other global skill-development initiatives in addressing the skills gap. The role of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which often struggle to provide adequate training opportunities, is also accounted for. It focusses on government programmes which are aimed at supporting workforce development. To foster a future-proof workforce, this chapter then calls for a stronger alignment between educational curricula, industry needs, and government policies. By promoting digital competencies and lifelong learning, nations can be assured that their economies are being well-protected so that they can all thrive in the evolving global landscape driven by the Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR 4.0) technologies.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the electrical conductivity and corrosion protection properties of a conductive coating composed of epoxy resin and carbon black in a sodium chloride (NaCl) solution.

The conductive coating was prepared by combining epoxy resin, hardener, and carbon black. The electrical conductivity of the paint was studied with a DC current‐voltage meter and field emission scanning electron microscopy. The corrosion protection properties of the paint were characterized by open circuit potential measurements and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy.

The highest conductivity observed was 4.23×10⁻⁴ Scm⁻¹ for the coating containing 20 wt% carbon black. The coating protected mild steel in a 3.0 percent NaCl solution for up to five days.

The results shown in this paper provide an insight into conductive paint and corrosion protection for future industrial applications and development.

The purpose of this paper is to focus on the development of an integrated computerised maintenance management system to improve the information storage of design and construction, diagnostic and defect risk assessments on IBS building through the integration of building information modelling (BIM).

The methodology used interviews with the IBS building client/maintenance contractor in Malaysia to gather information about maintenance management problems, approaches to address problems, information and communication technology implementation and use of emerging technologies, in addition to prototyping a system development life cycle for system development.

Relevant process flowchart documents of system development were obtained from the case study and reviewed to assist in providing an automation technique for decision-making and structural defect diagnostic operation through the integration of Visual Basic.Net, MS Access and Autodesk Revit software.

This research focuses on automatic bidirectional communications between an Expert System and BIM on a database level. Adoption of the approaches suggested in the research will enable the system to promote the development of zero IBS building maintenance.

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the system approaches and their application for managing IBS building in the context of Malaysian maintenance practice. Currently, the maintenance management method has affected the efficiency of the complex and high-rise industrialised building system (IBS) building maintenance management in Malaysia. Many issues such as poor service delivery, limited budgets, less competent staff and defect repetition emerged because of the usage of conventional method applications (paper-based form). The data revealed that the practice of maintenance management for complex and high-rise IBS buildings needs to be digitalised.

This qualitative research was carried out by conducting literature review and semi-structured interviews. Eight major maintenance organisations were selected based on a conventional method of practice in managing maintenance for complex and high-rise IBS buildings. The computerised system was developed using a data flow diagram and coding. Subsequently, the prototype system was tested.

By having this prototype system, the defect diagnosis and decision-making process become easier, faster and cost-effective in facilitating the maintenance assessment, defect diagnosis and control in relation to IBS building structure components.

In conclusion, the prototype system may improve the effectiveness of maintenance management practices for IBS building structure components in reducing defect design risks such as design calculation error to provide high-quality IBS building structure components for a safe and healthy environment.

The current maintenance management method affects the efficiency of the complex, high-rise industrialised building system (IBS) building maintenance management projects in Malaysia. The usage of a conventional system (paper-based reports/unsystematic database) has various drawbacks, such as IBS component aesthetic and structural defects which occur repeatedly in the building and maintenance of conventional building, lack of integration between maintenance systems and lack of the intelligent capabilities of linking defect diagnosis operations in maintenance affecting various building elements with IBS component defect knowledge. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to focus on the development of a mechanism to improve IBS component defect knowledge transfer in IBS building maintenance projects through the integration of building information modelling (BIM).

Eight clients/maintenance contractors were selected based on the major problems of using a conventional system to investigate the maintenance management practices in each complex and high-rise IBS building.

The findings indicated that several computerised systems such as Building Automation System and Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition System are used by a client/maintenance contractor. Moreover, BIM technology awareness was found to be limited, with no implementation in IBS building maintenance till now. The results of this case study were used as a foundation for the development of a prototype system using Computerised Maintenance Management System, Expert System and BIM.

The development of this new system improves IBS component diagnosis knowledge integration with the BIM technology.

This study aims to investigate into the adsorption mechanism of heavy metal ions Pb²⁺ and methylene blue (MB) dyes on an adsorbent-web formed from kapok fibres (KP) and polypropylene fibres (PP).

Initially, the KP underwent pre-treatment with NaClO₂ solution, and their morphology and structure changes were examined through scanning electron microscope images. Subsequently, the KP fibres were blended with PP fibres at a ratio of 70 / 30 and processed through a laboratory carding machine to form a fibre web, which was then secured using a heat press to fabricate the adsorbent-web. The resultant adsorbent-web was subjected to evaluation for the adsorption process.

The findings revealed that the adsorbent-web produced via the dry-laid method exhibited promising attributes, and the adsorption process conformed to the pseudo-second-order model and the Langmuir isotherm model. Parameters such as adsorbent-web porosity, solution pH, and adsorption thermodynamics exerted notable influences on the adsorption capacity of the adsorbent-web. Notably, the adsorbent-web demonstrated remarkable reusability and desorption capacity. In the fifth cycle, the adsorption capacity of adsorbent-web for MB and Pb²⁺ ions only decreased by 9.13% and 11.48%, respectively, compared to the first cycle. The desorption efficiency of the adsorbent-web exceeded 90% for MB and over 73% for Pb²⁺ ions.

This study makes a significant contribution to the practical application of KP as an adsorbent-web for treating waste from the textile dyeing industry.

This paper aims to study the attenuation and dispersion phenomena of shear waves in anelastic and elastic porous strips. Numerical investigations are performed for the phase and damped velocity profiles of the wave. For numerical computation purposes, water-saturated limestone and kerosene oil saturated sandstone for the first and second porous strips, respectively. Some other peculiarities have been observed and discussed.

Dispersion and attenuation characteristic of the shear wave propagations have been studied in an inhomogeneous poro-anelastic strip of finite thickness, which is clamped between an inhomogeneous poroelastic strip of finite thickness and an elastic half-space. Both the strips are initially stressed and the half-space is self-weighted. Analytical methods are used to calculate the interior deformations of the model with the involvement of special functions. The determination of the frequency equation, which includes the Bessel’s and Whittaker functions, has been obtained using the prescribed boundary conditions.

Impacts of attenuation coefficient, dissipation factor, inhomogeneities, initial stresses, Biot’s gravity, porosity and thickness ratio parameters on the velocity profile of the wave have been demonstrated through the graphical visuals. These parameters are playing an important role and working as a catalyst in affecting the propagation behaviour of the wave.

Inclusion of the concept of doubly layered initially stressed inhomogeneous porous structure of elastic and anelastic medium bedded over a self-weighted half-space medium brings a novelty to the existing literature related to the study of shear wave. It may be helpful to geologists, seismologists and structural engineers in the development of theoretical and practical studies.

Herein, this study aims to use our recently tailored and fully characterized poly acrylonitrile (AN)-starch nanoparticle graft copolymer having 60.1 graft yield percentage as a starting substrate for copper ions removal from wastewater effluent after chemical modification with hydroxyl amine via oximation reaction as a calorimetric sensor.

The calorimetric sensor batch technique was used to determine the resin's adsorption capacity, while atomic adsorption spectrometry was used to determine the residual copper ions concentration in the filtrate before and after adsorption. This was done to convert the copolymer's abundant nitrile groups into amidoxime groups, and the resulting poly (amidoxime) resin was used as a copper ion adsorbent. To validate the existence of amidoxime groups, the resin was qualitatively characterized using a rapid vanadium ion test and instrumentally using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy spectra and scanning electron microscopy morphological analysis.

At pH 7, 400 ppm copper ions concentration and 0.25 g adsorbent at room temperature, the overall adsorption potential of poly (amidoxime) resin was found to be 115.2 mg/g. The process's adsorption, kinetics and isothermal analysis were examined using various variables such as pH, contact time, copper ion concentration and adsorbent dose. To pretend the adsorption kinetics, various kinetics models, including pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order, were applied to the experimental results. The kinetic analysis indicated that the pseudo-second-order rate equation promoted the development of the chemisorption phase better than the pseudo-first-order rate equation. In the case of isothermal investigations, a study of observed correlation coefficient (R²) values indicated that the Langmuir model outperformed the Freundlich model in terms of matching experimental data.

To the best of the author's information, there is no comprehensive study for copper ions removal from waste water effluent using the recently tailored and fully characterized poly (AN)-starch nanoparticle graft copolymer having 60.1 graft yield percentage as a starting substrate after chemical modification with hydroxyl amine via oximation reaction as a calorimetric sensor.